TORONTO — As recently as a few months ago, the Toronto Blue Jays’ starting rotation looked completely different.
Shane Bieber didn’t make his Blue Jays debut until Aug. 22, Trey Yesavage was considered a prospect until September and Dylan Cease finished the season with the San Diego Padres. Now, all three project as key parts of the 2026 rotation, which helps make up for the potential departures of free agents Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer.
Those are significant additions to a group that already included Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios and Eric Lauer. At the same time, there’s a case to be made for adding even more rotation help, and the Blue Jays appear to be exploring the possibility themselves.
Underscoring the need for starting pitching depth, consider how the 12 playoff teams reached the post-season in 2025. Ten of those teams had six different pitchers make at least 10 regular-season starts, while the other two — the Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers — had seven pitchers start 10 or more times. The point being: every successful team needs more than five trusted starters.
Thanks to Lauer, the Blue Jays do have some depth, so they don’t have to be desperate. Still, they must also consider the volume of innings their pitchers covered on the way to Game 7 of the World Series and the fact that Gausman, their staff ace, will pitch most of next season at 35 years old.
With all of that in mind and Lauer’s ability to make a difference out of the bullpen if needed, it’s no surprise that the Blue Jays have remained engaged on the starting pitching market since agreeing to terms with Cease. One pitcher who could be of interest is Michael King, Cease’s former teammate with the Padres with a lifetime 3.24 ERA and a plus changeup.
Granted, teams express interest in many players this time of year, and it’s not yet clear whether there’s serious traction with King or other potential targets such as Bassitt or Scherzer, both of whom have publicly expressed openness to a reunion.
Beyond free agency, there’s also a trade market some in the industry describe as very active. Last month, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said the Blue Jays were engaged in early talks on that front, creating the possibility of movement later.
Before acquiring Bieber last summer, the Blue Jays checked on Minnesota Twins ace Joe Ryan and Washington Nationals hurler MacKenzie Gore, so they could circle back to assess prices there once again. Mind you, the ask will surely be high on pitchers of that calibre, so sometimes it’s simplest just to keep your prospects and spend.
It’s also notable that Monday marked the official opening for signing international free agents like Cody Ponce, who struck out 252 hitters on his way to a 1.89 ERA in Korea this past season. Thanks to their growing presence in the Pacific Rim, the Blue Jays have had the chance to do plenty of background work of Ponce, who’s now seen as a likely candidate to land a multi-year deal.
Some industry observers suggest Ponce’s market could move quickly now that he’s eligible to sign. It stands to reason that the Blue Jays will remain involved there.
Beyond starting pitching, the Blue Jays are still likely to add a late-inning relief option at some point and they haven’t ruled anything out with respect to offensive additions, including the two biggest names out there, Kyle Tucker and Bo Bichette.
Since Tucker’s from Tampa, Fla., a short drive from the Blue Jays’ spring training facility in Dunedin, Fla., it would be right out of their playbook to invite him for a personal tour including manager John Schneider, who also lives nearby. Whether any such invitation has been extended is unclear as of now. Of course, the Yankees train an even shorter drive from where Tucker went to high school, so the Blue Jays aren’t the only ones with a potential geographic advantage.
But while Tucker and Bichette are both of interest to the Blue Jays, there’s of course no guarantee they land a big-name bat in addition to the market’s top starting pitcher. Both Tucker and Bichette are among the most coveted players out there and while their markets may still be taking shape, they’ll have appealing options outside of Toronto — just as the Blue Jays have other needs beyond their offence.
Simply put, many paths are still available to the Blue Jays. While not all of them involve a superstar hitter, it’s just about impossible to imagine a scenario in which the Blue Jays don’t find more pitching.
